A Marauder Summer
by Mistress of Dreamz
Summary: Sirius, Remus, James and Lily end up having to spend their summer before 7th year at Hogwarts. Mischief ensues, of course. Full summary inside. LJ.
1. Letters to the Headmaster

**Full Summary: **Sirius, Remus, James and Lily end up having to spend their summer before 7th year at Hogwarts. There are few teachers around and with three mischief makers on the loose, what trouble could they possibly get up to? Many sub-plots to make the story interesting and more than enough twists to keep you interested. Please read and enjoy. I promise the chapters will get better with every new addition.

**Disclaimer: **I'm only saying it once… so listen close: although I dream about JKR's secret files it is APPARENT that I do NOT have a filing cabinet full of such things. So please rest assured that I do not own anything in here… except the plot and my sanity (although I really think that was stolen a while ago…).

**Author's Ramblings: **I kind of like the idea of this fic. Its super cool in my mind, cause I can so totally see certain scenes being played out in my mind. –Smiles like an idiot- Anyways… on to the story, then?

**Same Ole Beg: **I like reviews… they're nice and pretty and stuff… so leave me one, okay? It doesn't have to be long… just a word or two… good or bad… and, uh –cough- PLEASE! –Cough- **Review!**

**About The Chapter: **Yeah, sorry this one is super short. Consider this the prologue, okay? The rest of the chapters will be longer. I swear.

**P.S.: **This stands adamant through all chapters: sorry for any typos.

**Chapter One: Letters to the Headmaster**

_Professor Dumbledore –_

_It is in sad truths that I must say my husband and I have been called out for business this summer and we'll be in America in a week's time. If we may burden you, we wish to request that our daughter, Lily, may remain at Hogwarts for the summer – if it isn't too much of a trouble. She can help out where necessary and I'm certain that she'll cause no trouble. Please let us know if you can assist us. Thank you very much,_

_Mr. and Mrs. Evans_

* * *

**Mr. and Mrs. Evans,**

**I'd be happy to have Lily stay this summer at Hogwarts. I think she'll have an excellent time wasting away hours in our library reading books. She should be fine. We've made arrangements for her to stay in her dorm but she does have free reign of Hogwarts. But I must first tell you that only a small number of teachers will remain at Hogwarts (about four), and I myself will be in and out constantly on business… so she may be alone a good deal. However, I have some other requests from a few parents in a similar situation as yourselves, so she might have some company. Please feel free to contact me should you need anything else. Yours,**

**Professor Dumbledore**

* * *

_Professor Dumbledore –_

_I know we just spoke last Tuesday regarding James's recent detention, but today the misses and myself were told that we'd be up to Ministry work this summer. It's not that we don't trust James and Sirius, but we don't want them to be home alone the entire summer. I'm sure you've been made aware of the goings-on and its been made apparent that we will be near Australia for a month straight and then back here to London for two weeks and then we'll head up to Rome for the remains of the summer for the Ministry. Point is, as I'm sure you've already gathered, we need a place for James and Sirius to stay. If it isn't too much of a trouble, could they stay at Hogwarts for the summer? We'll be departing last day of term, so please let us know soon, if possible. Sincerely,_

_The Potters_

* * *

**Dear Mr. and Mrs. Potter,**

**James and Sirius are welcome to remain here at Hogwarts this summer. They shall have a bit of student company to keep them in line, seeing as I myself will be in and out this summer too. I will discuss further details with you on Thursday, when we meet about the dinner fiasco from last Wednesday. Yours,**

**Professor Dumbledore**

* * *

_Albus, darling –_

_I've heard news from Remus that James and Sirius are staying at Hogwarts this summer and as intrusive as this seems, I was hoping to request that he could stay as well. It seems easier for him to transform in the shelter you've provided for him rather than his set-up here at home. Please let me know soon. Thank you,_

_Mrs. Lupin_

* * *

**Mrs. Lupin – **

**Remus is welcome here at Hogwarts whenever he pleases. I shall be happy to have him stay for the summer.**

**Professor Dumbledore**

**

* * *

**


	2. Plots and Plans

**Disclaimer: **How DARE you ask me to do this again? Go back and read it from the first one, should you have forgotten.

**Author's Ramblings: **Yes! Chapter two! I feel so… so. Yeah, I feel "so."

**Duh: **Review! And if you can't do that, just read the whole way through, kay?

**MUST READ about the chapter: **There are going to be "…" in this chapter. That simply means that the "scene" is going from one to another. Got it? Good.

**Can't forget the P.S.: **Yep, sorry for any typos.

**Chapter Two: Plots and Plans**

* * *

_(Letter from the Headmaster to the parents of Lily, James – and Sirius – and Remus)_

_This will in no way interrupt your plans, but I feel it important to inform you that the few kids staying will have to ride the Hogwarts Express back to King's Cross and then return to Hogwarts. Also, they haven't been informed that other students are staying._

_Professor Dumbledore_

"We are staying at Hogwarts for summer! This is so boobing fantastic!" Sirius exclaimed as he closed the door of the marauder's compartment.

"Boobing?" Remus asked, looking at his friend worriedly.

"Yes, well… I like boobies and its better than sayin' 'flippin' cause I don't like 'flippin' very much…" he said, not going anywhere with his sentences.

"Mmhmm," James said, nodding his head in fake agreement.

…

"Oh, gosh, Lily, can you believe it? This is our last summer away from Hogwarts! Then we're back for our last year…" Alice said sadly.

"Well, for me it isn't."

"Lily, you know very well you're not repeating your seventh year," Alice said sternly.

Lily punched Alice in the arm playfully.

"I know that silly. I meant the summer."

"Oh, really?" she asked in confusion.

"Yeah… I told you, didn't I?" Lily answered, slightly lost.

"Told me what?"

"In that case I guess I didn't."

"Lily, you ought to tell me now."

"I'm staying at Hogwarts for the summer. On my own. Isolated."

Alice let out a shriek.

"You ARE?"

"Er – yeah…"

"OHMIGOD! Lucky!"

"Haha, maybe…"

"Oooo, I know what you can do!"

"What?"

"Raid the boys' dorms and vandalize their stuff with girly things."

…

"Fif if sfill."

"Sure it is, Pads."

"Fo one felse fan do fis."

"Oh really?" James challenged.

Sirius swallowed his mouthful of twelve chocolate frogs.

"Yes," he said clearly, taking a swig of pumpkin juice to clear his throat.

"Wanna bet?"

"How much?"

"If I can't do this then I have to break into McGonagall's office and write something 'foul' on her desk."

Sirius grinned at the idea.

"And if you can?" he asked.

"Then you have to take a pair of her knickers and wear them," James said.

Sirius made to interrupt him.

"_While_," James continued, "getting a picture taken."

Sirius thought about it for a minute.

"Who's our judge?" he asked suspiciously, still weighing the options.

"Moony," James said defiantly.

"Pardon?" Remus asked, looking up from his book.

"Be our judge, Moony?" Sirius asked, dropping to the floor and crawling across to Remus's feet, putting his hands on Remus's knees and looking pleadingly at him.

"Er – sure… as long as you get your perverted hands away from me," Remus said, flicking his hand with his fingers.

"Excellent," James said with a grin.

…

Lily smirked.

"What kind of girly things?" she asked, already playing with the lock to unleash her 'bad self.'

"I dunno… undergarments, feminine things… new bed sheets… paint," Alice said, wishing she could be there to help.

"Oh, this will be _fabulous_!" Lily squealed.

"So when they come back at start of term, they find their stuff all… _girlified_."

Their fellow roommate who was sharing a compartment with them scowled.

"What?" Lily asked her innocently. "I've got to have _something _to do for three months! I'll be all alone in a large stranded castle!" she finished, her voice raising a couple octaves.

The girl smiled at her and laughed, then returned to the book she was reading.

"It's not that bad, is it?" Lily asked Alice.

…

"COME ON, JAMES!" Peter screamed, sounding oddly like a girl.

James gave his friend a scared look (obviously for the boy's sanity), and shoved his ninth frog in his mouth.

"He's got four more to go, Sirius, before he beats your record," Remus said coolly, observing James's bulging cheeks.

Sirius crossed his legs and looked out the window with a pout.

"JAMES! JAMES! JAMES!" Peter chanted. His voice echoed around the compartment as he received odd stares from his fellow marauders.

James unwrapped his tenth frog and popped it in his gob with ease.

"Three more," Remus said, repeating the pattern he'd been using since the second frog.

…

"Do you want to borrow my pink shawl, Lily?" Alice asked as she grabbed her muggle clothes from her trunk. "For use in girlifying the boys' dorms, of course."

Lily laughed at the comment.

"No, I think I'll pass, but thanks."

"Suit yourself," Alice said as she shuffled out of the compartment to change.

…

"Two more," Remus yawned as James held his cheek open while inserting a new chocolate frog into the group of gooey mess.

James raised his eyebrows and nodded enthusiastically at Sirius, his nagging voice of "Haha! Told you so!" echoing in Sirius's mind.

A still silence sat in the compartment as James opened another chocolate frog.

Destiny was getting – dum dum dum – closer.

…

"Twenty minutes till Kings Cross," Emily, the girls' roommate, said as she plopped back down in her seat.

"Fascinating," Lily said unenthusiastically.

The girls stared at each other in silence for a minute.

"Someone wanna go visit Frank with me?" Alice asked.

"No," the girls said in unison.

…

Wrappers littered the compartment floor like a new layer of carpeting. There was chocolate and some white substance smeared on the window and a string of blue goo sliding down the door. It looked like a small food bomb had exploded in the compartment. But, of course, nothing of the sort had happened. This was typical with boys, marauders in particular.

Sirius sat in steely silence, watching James's every move as he crammed another chocolate frog in his mouth. His fist clenched tighter as Remus said (with a bored tone), "One more frog."

James took the final chocolate frog with one hand and his bulging cheek with the other. Placing the frog on his lap, he used his other hand to pry open his mouth and stretch his features further (his lips were starting to crack from being stretched so far). He grabbed the frog again and slid it into his mouth, the chocolate melting slightly and leaving a blob of the substance on the corner of his lips.

"Hmm?" he asked, clearly saying, "See?"

"He still has to be able to eat them," Sirius mumbled, crossing his arms in a pout.

…

"Ten minutes, thank God," Emily said.

"Are you going to count down the minutes until we actually get there, Em?" Lily asked sourly, sick of the constant sighs of "nineteen – eighteen – seventeen" and such coming form her friend.

"Well, I wasn't planning on it, but if you'd like me to, I'd be more than happy…" Emily said.

"Em, are you aware that you've _been _counting down the past ten minutes?" Lily asked, straightening her knee-high sock.

"Um… no…"

"Then kindly be aware of it now and shut the ruddy hell up."

…

A large squelching sound was heard as James's teeth sank into the chocolate mess inside his mouth. The sound was followed by another one… and another… and another…

"I don't think he can do it," Sirius said happily.

"I think he can," Peter said with an energetic nod towards James.

James gulped down a mouthful of chocolate and began chewing again on the remaining frogs in his mouth.

"This is rather unappetizing," Remus said with a grimace.

The following five minutes passed in odd silence as the only sound was James's chewing.

"We're getting clo-serrrrrrr," Peter sang.

"Peter, don't you have clothes to change into before we get to the station?" Sirius asked, shooting an annoyed look at his "friend."

Peter sighed as he changed out his robes quickly, still watching James eat.

"Hurry it on up, Prongs, ole Wormy here's gotta run in a sec," Sirius said with a sly grin, getting up close and "personal" (although Sirius didn't know the meaning of "personal") with him.

James raised an eyebrow in mock threat as he continued to chew.

With a surprising gulp, he swallowed the whole mess of chocolate.

"Done," James said with pride. "And McGonagall's knickers are looking pretty nice to me."

…

The girls gathered together in a large group hug as the train slowed to a stop.

"I'll miss you girls so much," Lily said, hugging each of them in turn for good measure.

"Don't forget to write," Emily said.

"And don't forget to give us news!" Alice squealed, giving her friend a tight squeeze.

"I won't and I won't! Don't worry! Have a great summer girls!" Lily said, sniffling a bit.

Lily stood at the door of the train as her friends shuffled off, their trunks wobbling slightly behind them. They met up with their parents and turned; she waved one last wave at them before turning back around and heading back to her compartment for the journey back to Hogwarts. It seemed all too soon for the trip.

…

James and Sirius leapt off the train like ballerinas and onto the platform where all the parents stood. Remus stepped off like a regular gentleman while Peter clambered off with such disgrace that he ended in a pile of a hooting owl, trunks, robes and clammy gray knickers. The boys let out an "urgh" at the sight and waited while in laughter as Peter made his way up to a normal standing position. It took him another five minutes to reorganize his bags.

"Shall we depart to give your love one final goodbye kiss?" Sirius asked, bowing to James.

"Yes, we shall," James grinned, ruffling his hair and looking around for Lily.

"I don't see why you do this every year, James," Remus said, coming up beside the boys as Peter was engulfed in a hug from his mother. "It's completely pointless; she doesn't like you and she always tells you to piss off every year you do so."

"But that's her interpretation," James said confidently, standing on his toes for a better view. "I prefer to interpret it as 'playing hard to get.'"

"You may prefer it like that, Prongs, but what you're seeing isn't the truth," Sirius said, sounding oddly like Remus.

"Padfoot, this is going to be one of the last times I ever get to do this," James said, seeming slightly sad for a moment. He looked at Remus. "Moony, next summer will be torture cause I probably wont see Lily again. You do know that, right? I mean… this is slightly important to me, if you don't mind."

"Of course, Prongs," Sirius said, patting his mate on the shoulder. "Let's go give Peter a noogie before we get back on the train," he added as an afterthought, dragging Remus along with him, leaving James to look for Lily.

…

The train probably wasn't going to leave for another couple of minutes. It was time Lily stopped pacing and came to face that fact.

She sighed and dropped onto the compartment seat. Maybe a magazine would make the minutes pass faster.

…

"I don't see her," James grumbled sadly as he joined his friends.

They looked after Peter whose hair was sticking up in a million odd angles as if licked by a cow. He followed his mother through the brick wall then let their eyes travel to girls' boobies for a couple of moments before actually hearing James's words that were spoken minutes before.

"Pardon?" Sirius asked, still goggling at a girl with particularly large melons.

"I said I didn't see her," James repeated.

"Oh, sorry mate," he replied.

"Its okay… it's not like my whole life just went down the drain or anything."

"Prongs," Remus said sternly. "This is now our summer vacation. We get to explore Hogwarts. We get to roam those halls like mad and learn every secret we haven't learned yet. We get to know all the goings-on of this gorgeous castle and wander unsupervised. Cheer up, mate! This is going to be the best summer of all time!"

"Wow," Sirius said quietly.

James leaned over to his friend. "What?" he whispered to him, still watching Moony.

"I didn't know he had it in him."

"Had what in him?"

"That ability to drop the Prefect-ism and become… a true marauder."

"Wow," James echoed.

"I know."

…

The stupid kids were already off the pissing train – what was taking them so bloody long to start it back up and hit the tracks back to Hogwarts?

No, Lily wasn't impatient… she was eager. Very, very, very eager.

For nothing, of course.

…

"The train – is – moving."

"Thank you, Padfoot, for making us aware of that."

"No! The train is _moving._"

"Once again, thank you for pointing that out."

"The train is _moving_!"

"What is your ruddy problem?" James roared, throwing his _Quidditch through the Ages _book at Sirius's head, which promptly bounced off with a thud.

"I forgot something!" Sirius cried.

James stared blankly at his friend.

"What, Sirius," Remus said politely, "did you forget?"

"My _Quidditch Illustrated _magazine! It's the swimsuit edition too!"

James and Remus exchanged worried looks.

Sirius whimpered.

"Then RUN, MAN!" James screamed, as he ripped open the compartment door and pelted down the hall after Sirius to collect the magazine.

Sirius wrenched open the side door and leapt out of the train and onto the platform.

"C'mon, Pads! You can do it!" James called encouragingly.

Slowly Remus walked up besides James and stuck his head out the door to see the commotion.

Sirius skidded to a halt where the magazine was abandoned, plucked it from the cement and ran back towards his awaiting friends.

He gasped as he reached out to the door handle, stretching to get aboard.

"Take the magazine!" he hollered, throwing it at James.

James caught it with great ease and held it close, making sure it was safe.

"Sirius! Come on! Just jump!"

"I can't – I can't do it, Prongs!" he cried weakly.

"Yes you can!" James replied loudly.

Sirius gave one great heave and landed with a _thud _on top of James in the train. As soon as the pair got up, they were looking into Remus's rolling eyes.

"You are aware that you're both idiots, correct?" he asked, straightening his robes.

"Yes, of course we are," Sirius said stupidly.

"Then you are aware that the train _wasn't moving at all _whilst your dramatic 'scene', correct?"

James and Sirius exchanged blank expressions.

"I don't understand you, Moony ole pal," Sirius said, puzzled.

Within a second, Remus grabbed Sirius gruffly by the neck of the robes and thrust his head to the window so his cheek was pressed against the glass, leaving smudge marks.

Sirius looked down at the unmoving platform.

"Well, I'll say, the train isn't moving after all."

…

Lily marched along the hall up to the driver's compartment. She was ready to give the man a piece of her mind.

Of course, she wasn't able to, seeing as the train had already started to move.

…

"Floral knickers or plaid?"

"I don't know, James."

"Pads, would you like to wear floral knickers or plaid?"

"Does McGonagall even _wear _floral knickers?"

"Well, I'd assume she does, seeing as she's old and every old lady wears floral knickers."

"How do you know that, James?"

"It was a disastrous day, Moony, when I came upon my Grammy's old, graying floral knickers."

Remus nodded his head in acknowledgement but went back to his book.

"So, Pads," James said again. "Floral or plaid?"

"Can I have plain ones?" Sirius replied with a grimace.

"Sure you can… if you want lacy ones."

"Oh, no, please no! Bad images! BAD IMAGES!" Sirius began punching at his eyes. "BAD IMAGES!"

"Okay, Pads, I get the point!" James said, trying to get Sirius to calm down.

Eventually Sirius stopped abusing himself, and calm was restored to the compartment. Temporarily.

Silence.

"I'm in a muggle-mood."

"Pardon?" Remus asked.

"Yes, a muggle-mood."

"And what, Sirius, might that be?"

"You've got those… whatcha'mcallits… ressods?" he asked, snapping his fingers in thought.

"Records?" Remus offered.

"Records! Yes!" he exclaimed happily, waving his snapping fingers around, missing James's face by inches.

"What about the records?" Remus asked cautiously.

"I want to listen to them – dance!"

"Oh dear Merlin," James mumbled, burying his face in his hands.

"Oh! I know!" Sirius said suddenly. "I'll _serenade you, James_!"

James's eyes widened in horror at the idea.

"No, Pads, really, it isn't necessary."

"Oh, I heard a song a while ago… what was it… it was all _girlish _and perfect for you and your Lily obsession."

James slunk lower in his seat, even though there was absolutely no one who could see him and laugh at him for life.

"Bugger!" Sirius exclaimed. He took a lock of his black hair and began to chew upon it while thinking.

"Please tell me you don't have any records with you," James mouthed to Remus.

He looked down sheepishly.

Once again Sirius snapped his fingers.

"I know it!" he squealed.

He drew breath. So much breath, in fact, that he knocked himself over and began a coughing/choking fit. After recovering from his near death experience, he took a smaller breath and began to belt out:

"_I've been cheated by you since I don't know when; So I made up my mind, it must come to an end; Look at me now, will I ever learn?; I don't know how but I suddenly lose control; There's a fire within my soul; Just one look and I can hear a bell ring; One more look and I forget everything, o-o-o-oh; Mamma mia, here I go again; My my, how can I resist you?; Mamma mia, does it show again?; My my, just how much I've missed you!_"

He would have continued into the second verse if it wasn't for the fist that had just made contact with his face.

…

The distant sound of music was starting to drive Lily up the wall. Who on earth would be singing on the Hogwarts Express when there were no students aboard? Surely the workers on the train didn't sing… and even if they did they wouldn't be singing _Mama Mia_, a _muggle _song.

She stood up and pushed open the door to her compartment. It was the brightest decision, seeing as the singing got louder with the door open. Lily sighed to herself and shook her head, unable to believe that she was already annoyed out of her mind and she hadn't even gotten back to Hogwarts yet.

She walked slowly down the hall, trying to place the singing. It sounded oddly male. But when the high notes were hit it sounded female.

Lily contemplated going back to her book and just ignoring the music – letting whatever person it was sing to their hearts content – but she fought her own preferred intentions and continued down the hall, determined to find the source of the noise.

…

"Next part!" Sirius called happily. He dodged the pillow that was thrown at him.

"_I've been angry and sad about the things that you do; I can't count all the times that I've told you we're through; And when you go, when you slam the door; I think you know that you won't be away too long; You know that I'm not that strong.; Just one look and I can hear a bell ring; One more look and I forget everything, o-o-o-oh; Mamma mia, here I go again; My my, how can I resist you?; Mamma mia, does it show again?; My my, just how much I've missed you_!"

"Sirius!" James screamed, shoving his fingers in his ears. "Will you shut your pie hole?"

"One more part, Prongsie! Please!" Sirius begged.

James rolled his eyes in response but hit his head against the window nonetheless.

Much head banging followed as Sirius began to _shake his butt _and do random bouts of fist-pumping.

"_Yes, I've been brokenhearted; Blue since the day we parted; Why, why did I ever let you go?; Mamma mia, even if I say; Bye bye, leave me now or never; mamma mia, it's a game we play; Bye bye doesn't mean forever_!"

He continued to shake his butt even though he had stopped singing. He happily caught sight of his reflection in the glass and continued to shake his rear end until he noticed a large yellow sticky note on his behind.

"Well that's one rather embarrassing shadow," he commented. "My arse does _not _look that fat!" He looked to his friends. "Does it?"

James stared at his friend for a moment.

"You done now?" he asked.

Sirius turned around and peeled the sticky note from his bum and read:

_You want to sing one more time? Go ahead but you're getting THROWN OUT THE BLOODY WINDOW WHEN YOU DO_! _Signed, Remus_.

He scratched his nose with the paper, coughed, then said, "Yes, I do believe I am."

…

The singing had stopped. Abruptly, at that.

Lily paused outside one of the many compartments, unable to decide if she should continue the search or just go back to her own compartment. She could be the first one (the _only _one, she reminded herself) to get off the train; she was at the front, like a good student. She wouldn't have to worry about a long walk up to the carriages _after _getting off the train. She'd just hop right off the train and into one of the few carriages that always stood waiting and she'd be back up at Hogwarts before eight. Then, of course, she'd pick up some dinner in the kitchens and return to her dorm to await the deadly boredom of summer.

Yes, that sounded like a good plan.

Lily reluctantly turned around and headed back to her compartment, to follow her own boring plans.

…

Hogwarts was coming closer; if they craned their necks the right way they could see it in the distance. Another forty minutes or so and they'd be back at the place where they made all their mischief. Hogwarts: the mischief factory. After getting off the bus they'd be able to get some slight exercise by walking up to the carriages – they sat in the back of the train, like the troublemakers they were – then go to the kitchens for dinner and retire to their dorms to plot out some pranks and examine the Marauders Map…. If they felt up to it they'd mosey around the grounds for an hour or so before hitting the sack. Or, in Sirius's case, being force-fed sleeping potion after keeping everyone up for two or three hours later than necessary.

With all that in mind, the train slowed to a stop just under an hour later. The three marauders stretched and yawned, moaned and groaned and got their lazy bums off the train. Lily, however, was already in her carriage before the boys had even gotten the chance to stand upright properly. The sky was bright, not a single cloud out to dampen the mood. Hogwarts was home, and the four students had it all to themselves.

The day was ending but summer had just barely begun.

* * *

**Author's Ramblings: **If you hate long chapters, then I apologize. Although I honestly hope you enjoyed this. I had a lot of fun writing it. I kept saying "just end it here" to myself, but no such luck. I wanted the train ride to be one chapter, and I wanted it to be interesting… one of my many sub-plots.

The song lyrics were for _Mama Mia _by _Abba_, of course. I actually wanted Sirius to have his mini-Karaoke-night, but I wanted to keep it in tune with the whole Hogwarts scene (not modern day Rock music, LOL)… so I looked at the Top 100 charts for 1997 (when this takes place)… and I found that on there. And I can entertain myself for a while, imaging Sirius belting out those lyrics.

Anywho, I hope those of you who read this are willing to put me on your alert list and keep watch. Also, if you enjoyed it, please review. Reviews just make my day. D


	3. Seeing Shadows

**Author's Ramblings: **Boy am I a moron. I went back to look at my chapter two, and I noticed that when I was rambling at the bottom, I said _1997_. So I'll make the correction now: it was supposed to be _1977_. Good? Now I feel semi-better.

**About the Chapter: **So where I left off in the previous chapter, Lily wasn't aware that three of the marauders were staying and they didn't know that she was staying either. Once again "…" will be used to flip from scene-to-scene. I think this is the last time they'll be used in a while.

**Stupid Tidbit: **This is the italics chapter, for some reason. So many italics… so much emphasis.

**Favor: **Please be a dear and leave a review at the end!

**Chapter Three: Seeing Shadows**

"Finally," Lily whispered the next morning. For once there was _no _screaming over the bathroom, _no _panics about lost eyeliner, _no _slaps for being woken up early, _no drama_. _Finally_.

Lily strode over to the window and pulled open the curtains, smiling at the view. She opened the window and leaned out, letting the wind play with her hair. Hogwarts was _hers _and _only _hers. _This _was the life.

…

"Do you think they'll still make us breakfast like during the year?" Sirius asked, slightly panicked.

"Of course," Remus said, pulling on his jumper. "They have to… that'd be, like, child abuse if they didn't."

"Can house elves abuse children?" he asked.

"_No_, Sirius," Remus said. "But _I _can if you don't shut up."

Sirius shut up.

"Isn't this cool?" James asked, pulling open the curtains of his window and looking down at the grounds. "This is _all ours_."

"It's always ours, Prongs," Sirius said, scratching his bum.

"Please remove your hand from that area, Sirius," Remus begged, shielding his eyes.

Sirius continued to scratch.

James sighed as he opened the window.

"This is _great_," he said, leaning out to look below him. He looked around, happy to still be at Hogwarts. To his left, up, down and to his right, back to his left.

He did a double-take, then whipped his head back into the dorm.

"Oh Merlin, I think I'm dreaming," he mumbled.

"And why's that, Prongs?" Sirius asked, joining James by the window.

"I think I just saw Evans."

…

Lily pulled her head back in the window and counted to three.

She was dreaming.

Dreaming, dreaming, dreaming.

_Please _be dreaming.

It wasn't James Potter, surely it wasn't. If James (and his fellow bum boys, Lily thought sourly) was staying at Hogwarts, Dumbledore would have told her. Of course he would.

She was just seeing her shadow in the glass or something. Yes, it was just her shadow.

…

"No way!" Sirius exclaimed, poking his head out the window and nearly toppling out.

After a moment or two he withdrew his head. "Yep, Prongs, you're dreaming… I don't see anyone there."

"Really?" James asked weakly. He'd let his hopes get up.

"Truly."

James sighed. "Yeah, okay… it was probably just my imagination or something… or my shadow or whatever."

"I'm sure that's what it was. Evans wouldn't be here."

"Yeah…"

…

Lily stretched, took her shower, got ready, talked to the house elves, got some breakfast, wandered the halls to see if any of the professors were there, talked to some of the portraits, fed toast to the giant squid and found her feet leading her to the library.

She had always liked the Hogwarts library. It was like all of the universities' in muggle London. But it was better. It had every document ever recorded (that was "appropriate") that had to deal with witches and wizards alike. It had all the _Daily Prophets _from the day Hogwarts was founded. Some shelves were dusty, due to lack of curiosity from the students. Some shelves were perfectly waxed from always being touched. There was, of course, the Quidditch section, which never had a single book in; they were always checked out by a member of one of the four teams. There was the Charms section, her favorite, which always proved interesting. There was the extra study area, one she knew to hold certain Dark Arts books that no one – except few of the Slytherins – had ever touched. Then, of course, there was the snogging section.

No one actually knew how the students got away with it, what with Madam Pince always on the loose, ready to curse a student senseless if they so much as wiped a bogey on the inside of the books cover. But the snogging shelf was popular. James Potter and his cronies (James and Sirius in particular) were usually always reported to have had a girl by that shelf; for some reason the rumors on Potter had stopped. Some say he's stopped coming. Lily didn't believe it too much.

Rumor also said that someone had put a permanent sticking charm on a quill (much like the one of a certain Rita Skeeter's) and bewitched it to record the names of each couple that came back to the snogging shelf and make note of which bases the students reached. It was a wicked little quill that always produced many suspicious looks from students to the recent guilty couple. Once again, the students believed it to be the work of James Potter and his cronies. Thought it'd be funny to hear what other students got up to – or into.

But Lily wasn't in the library to investigate the snogging shelf. She wasn't there to check out a Quidditch book for the first time in her life. No, she was there for the dusty shelves. The one that never got looked at. She was going to mosey around and read the things that she hadn't read before. She was there to look at the shelf that the marauders were inseparable from for their first four years. She was there to read up on the secrets of Hogwarts.

…

"Can we do something?"

"We're already doing something."

"Well… do something prank-wise."

"We always can, I just don't see what the point is right now. There's no one to play the pranks on… and if it's a big enough prank Dumbledore will have flat out proof that it was us, seeing as we're the only damn students here," Remus said wisely, jumping the trick step.

"Bugger," Sirius mumbled. "Then how are we going to have fun this summer?"

"We can look at the library," Remus suggested, glowing at the idea of so many books all to himself.

"No," Sirius and James said together. "We're not doing nerd-like things."

"Reading isn't nerd-like," Remus protested.

"Oh yes it is," James said, turning the corner. "It totally is."

The trio walked in silence for couple minutes, heading towards the Room of Requirement.

"When's full moon?" Sirius asked.

"A week and a half," Remus said with a grumble.

"Oh… we should have some fun soon, then."

Remus threw a nasty look at Sirius.

"Speak for yourself," he growled.

"Oh, sorry, Moony," Sirius apologized.

The group continued to walk in silence.

"So what are we going to the Room of Requirement for, again, Prongs?" Sirius asked.

"We're looking for something," James said.

"And what something might that be?"

"I want to see if Evans really is here."

"And how do we find that out?"

"I don't know… crystal ball? We just have to look for – need – something that can help us find out if she's here or not."

"I still don't get it… Moony, is there anything that does that?"

"No," Remus said. "James, I really don't think you'll have any luck… I've read a bunch of books on wizardry inventions and I haven't seen a single thing about tracking someone. Oh Merlin," he said after a moment. "You're _stalking _her… _again_."

"Last time she was aware that I was following her! And I refuse to be given the title of 'stalker,' so kindly do not say that. And I'm not _stalking her_, I'm trying to find out if she's here at Hogwarts or not!"

"Then why don't we just look around?" Remus protested, not liking the idea of stalking his friend.

"Hogwarts is huge, Moony!" James said, spinning around to face his friend. "There are way too many places to look! Where could she possibly be?"

Remus grinned.

"The library?"

James and Sirius pouted as Remus wore a triumphant smile. They all knew he was right.

"Fine," he grumbled.

The three turned on their heals and towards the opposite direction, started heading to the library.

…

The ceiling was high. Really high. Looking up, it was the height of three-story building. And this was the back section that no kid ever ventured… the only area with "Secrets about Hogwarts" whispering in the dust.

Lily had looked at the shelves that were at eye-level but not a single one looked interesting. They were just her simple books, the ones about Hogwarts _tradition_, none about the _secrets_. So she stepped on the ladder and walked up three steps. She reached out and picked up a book and found, to her disgust, that the following nine steps would be just like the one she was holding, which was all about the _founders _and _why they formed Hogwarts_. Which was a pretty stupid thing to write a book about, seeing as the Sorting Hat sung the story every year. But whatever.

So she was already up twelve steps, the near equivalent of _one whole story_. Lily didn't fear heights all that much but she was considering it every time she looked down. She took another two steps and reached out, once again praying that this would be the shelf with secrets. She glanced at the title, _The Founders and Me_, knowing she shouldn't even bother to touch the book. She continued her climb, until she was almost _two stories _up (the thought scared her to death). The search was worth it when she saw the title, _Passages Only Known to Troublemakers – Hogwarts Secrets Unveiled_. She grinned at the idea and pulled the book. She knew she'd hit herself moments later, but nonetheless took the book and dropped it, letting it fall to the ground.

It hit the tile with an echoing _thud _and the covers opened, leaving the pages slightly bent. Dust flew up at her as it made its way out of the pages. She coughed, unable to believe that these books really hadn't been touched in that long. She shamed herself silently, disgracing herself for _dropping a book_.

Lily looked up at the many shelves left. How the marauders did this, she honestly didn't know.

…

As the marauders approached they heard an echoing _thud _in the library's walls.

"Peeves must get up to trouble over the summer too," Sirius observed, opening the door to the library.

"Of course he does," Remus said, pushing past Sirius and breathing in the friendly smell of books.

"Lets get to work. We're looking for Evans," James said, poking his head down one row of books.

"I forgot how huge this thing was," Sirius said, looking up at the many shelves.

"It's pretty obvious that you'd forget, Sirius," Remus sniffed. "Seeing as you stopped coming at the end of fourth year."

"Well, we'd checked out every book necessary and bought the rest of them. Why would we come back to the library? We'd gotten the animagi thing down."

"So? The books don't like to be _forgotten_… they're like a girlfriend. Stop visiting and they'll start to hate you."

"Oh… so that explains the hate mail I got last year," Sirius said, rubbing his chin in thought.

"Evans," James repeated.

"Right-o, Prongs," Sirius said. He turned away from Remus and began to look up and down the dusty shelves.

"Why don't we just call her?" Remus asked.

"Because… if she's on a ladder and she hears our voices, she'll, like, freak out and fall… we can't hurt my future wife," James said, heading towards the charms section.

"Sure," said Sirius. "We'll just walk up behind her while she's on the ladder and scare her to death. That's _completely _different from calling her name."

…

After Lily dropped _Passages Only Known to Troublemakers – Hogwarts Secrets Unveiled _to the ground, she looked up at the many towering stacks of books and found it hopeless. She'd read the book she'd found and if it wasn't good enough (it was the size of a small encyclopedia – it should be) she'd return to the aisle and continue her search. She'd made her way down the ladder smoothly, picked up the book and made her way towards the south exit of the library. She was walking out just as she'd heard the north entrance open.

It was probably Madam Pince coming to check on the books. No one else was in the castle, after all.

…

"I don't see her, James!" Sirius called from the opposite end of the library.

James and Sirius were standing by the exit, waiting for James as he trudged towards them, looking upset and depressed.

"Aw, c'mon, Prongs, cheer up," Sirius said, patting him on the back. "You didn't really think Evans would be here, did you?"

James mumbled something like "yes."

"Well… you could owl her if you like… just please don't make us go searching for her."

James glared at his friend but nodded his head nonetheless.

"Great," Sirius said, clapping his hands. "Cause I feel in the mood for an outing."

…

There wasn't all that much in the book. All it was was a stupid monologue about a trouble-maker's seven years at Hogwarts and one secret passage that they'd found. That didn't really go anywhere.

The secret passage was behind a mirror on the fourth floor. If you followed it, the book said, it would come out to a door in a dark alley a block away from Madam Pudifoots. It didn't seem all that dangerous, seeing as the stupid bloke that wrote it was still alive after many of these trips to write the book.

Evening was fast approaching and the clock was about to chime five. Lily wanted to take the passage and actually see if it did come out by Madam Puddifoots, but she was going to wait a bit so she could get her cloak and wand and prepare herself. It was slightly disturbing, going the passage. Seeing as the first thought that came to her mind after deciding to go was a ghostly echo of, "_You're a marauder now_."

…

Five thirty approached and Lily was at the mirror on the fourth floor. It was stupid to say that she was nervous but she'd never been _bad _or _rebellious _or _marauder-like _at any time in her life. This was a rather big emotional step for her. In the back of her mind she was hoping that some counselor would just pop out of the sky and tell her what to do… and they could do counselor stuff and _counsel _her and help her.

But no such luck, seeing as Hogwarts didn't have counselors. Apparently, if you had a problem, you were supposed to go to one of your _professors _and trust them with your secrets. They'd help you, of course, but by lunch the next day it'd be news to all the other professors – Dumbledore too – after being discussed multiple times in the staff room.

Poor Stacy Adams learned that lesson after she went to Sprout for advice about her boyfriend. Apparently he was a bit _pushy _and she wanted the bases as well, but she wasn't sure of what to do. She was brought into discussion with Dumbledore and after much blushing on her part and odd coughs on Dumbledore's she was free to leave. But, naturally, all the professors knew about it and stared at her and her boyfriend whenever they walked past, holding hands. Stacy would immediately drop his hand and look away. Poor boy never really knew what happened.

With no counselor near, Lily was left to her own resources. So she pushed the mirror aside and made her way into a small hallway.

There was no where to go.

It was a complete dead end.

She walked forward, wondering if there was maybe a left or right turn to take. But one step to far landed in:

Thump. Thud.

"Ow!"

Bonk. Thump.

"Owwwww!"

Thud. Crash.

"Sodding hell!"

Thump. Thud.

"Oh… my bum…"

Stairs.

Lily stood up and straightened her robes, rubbing her bottom and cringing in pain. She looked around and found that the only way to continue along the passage was to turn left. So she did. She walked twelve steps and hung a right. The path never seemed to end. She continued walking forward for another ten minutes before another pair of footsteps joined her own. She stopped. She heard the odd _clip clop _sound of steps. Three sets of feet. Her heart was pounding so hard she wouldn't be at all surprised if the roof collapsed on her, her beats shaking the rock. But her heart rate slowed a bit when she heard the walking stop. It was "safe" again.

She continued to walk – with a bit more vigor – until she met another left. She took it.

Until she heard running behind her.

"Get back here you no good toe-clipping!" a voice hollered.

Two pairs of running feet. Towards her.

"Give me back my wand!" the voice yelled.

"You never had a wand, Prongs, you Nancy-boy!" another voice yelled.

"I'll have you know I've got a bigger one!" the first voice screamed proudly.

Lily stopped dead in her tracks, frozen to the spot.

No, not at the wand reference.

"You can't run that far, Padfoot!" the first voice yelled.

Lily saw the shadows steps behind her and her heart rate began to race. She was literally being followed. By some mass-murderer. She was going to be murdered in a dark passage heading to Hogsmeade! She'd never see light again! She'd never-

Two male voices were screaming back at each other, one turned around, running backwards, the other's hands mere inches from the backwards one's neck.

Lily's shrill high-pitched scream echoed in the passage as the two figures collided with her. And then fell on her.

Much screaming continued when she saw whose body was pressed down upon her own. Her eyes widened in horror as she looked up into the face of James Potter.

James's face glowed in delight at seeing Lily… and being on top of her. Had he been properly aware that it was her, certain parts of his anatomy might have been glowing with delight as well.

"Prongs, mate," Sirius mumbled, his voice odd as if pressed against the concrete. "Could you kindly lift yourself up? My leg is underneath you and on this chick's… something."

"Oh thank Merlin." Lily breathed a sigh of relief at knowing that it was just a leg.

James and Sirius got up and dusted themselves off. James offered Lily a hand to help her up just as Remus came into view.

"You two are such pricks! When will you _learn_?" he asked, shaking his head at the pair before catching sight of Lily. "Lily!" he exclaimed, taking a step or two back, shocked.

"Lily?" Sirius repeated, turning around. "Shite!" he yelped, backing up a bit, realizing that it was indeed Lily Evans.

"Hello, Remus," Lily mumbled, accepting James's hand up. She couldn't help but feel a slight tingle as she held his hand.

"I told you!" James said happily, pointing at Sirius. "I knew she was here!"

"So that _was _you I saw this morning!" Lily said, as the pieces clicked into place… like in the library.

"Yeah," James agreed, then looked at Moony. "See? It was her."

"Okay, Prongs, we've got it," Sirius said, rolling his eyes.

The group stared at each other.

James stared at Lily. Lily stared at Remus. Remus stared at Sirius. Sirius stared at James.

It was a big stare-fest.

"Hold it," Sirius said, although no one was moving or doing anything of any sort. Sirius turned to Lily and stood in front of her, his faces inches from her own. Then, he growled, "How do _you _know about this passage?" Sirius turned to look at James, raising his eyebrow in question.

"I never told her, if that's what you're implying," James said. Then he too looked at Lily. "Yeah, how _do _you know about this passage?"

"Oh," Lily said, temporarily forgetting where she'd found out about the passage. "I read it in this book." She pulled out _Passages Only Known to Troublemakers – Hogwarts Secrets Unveiled _and handed it to Sirius.

He flipped through the book then slammed it shut with a grimace.

"Ruddy hell," he said. "So all those years of pain-inflicting torture, injures and sneaking around and we could have just read a sodding _book_?"

"Hey!" Remus protested. "Without those adventures the lot of us probably wouldn't be mates."

James nodded his head in agreement.

"I wonder what prick wrote that. He obviously isn't skilled… he never got to the level of a marauder," James said with pride.

"That's for sure," Sirius seconded.

"So, Evans," James purred after a moment. "Where you be headed in Hogsmeade?"

Lily took a step back from him.

"I wasn't really heading anywhere, Potter," she said. "I was more interested in following the passage."

"Looks like Evans wants to be a marauder," Sirius said with a laugh.

"Oh really?" James asked. "Well you know what you've got to do to become a marauder, Evans?"

"What?" Lily growled.

"You've got to kiss a member of the crew," he said, puckering his lips.

"In that case I'd kiss Remus," Lily said flatly.

James's smile fell and Remus blushed.

"Not," Lily said, "that I even want to become a marauder."

"Everyone wants to be a marauder, Lily," Sirius said confidently.

"I guess I'm not everyone, Black," she snapped.

"But you are being awful _marauder-like_," James purred. "I like that kind of rebellion in a girl."

"Too bad they don't like it in you, Potter," Lily hissed.

James was about to make a retort when Remus interrupted him.

"Are you staying for the entire summer, Lily?" he asked.

"Yes," she said, throwing a glare at James. "Are you?"

"Of course," Sirius replied for him.

It was Remus's turn to glare.

"Then might I make a proposition?" he asked.

"You might," Lily said, shifting her weight.

"Then may I say that since the four of us are going to be sharing Hogwarts together this summer – that we'll be in constant way of each other – it would be better to put aside differences and become _friends_. That we might be able to make peace with people – particularly you and James. I would much rather enjoy this summer than have it be like a typical school year," he finished with an unpleasant grimace.

Lily looked at James and sighed, shifting her weight again. She glanced at the ground then looked at him and sighed again. She repeated the move twice. Then she looked at James and stared him straight in the eye.

"Fine," Lily said, giving in. "And I don't hate you blokes or anything… you're just annoying," she said, her gaze lingering on James.

"Excellent," Remus said, walking up beside her. "Then, are we going to Hogsmeade or back to Hogwarts?"

"I vote for Hogsmeade," James said.

"I second that," Sirius said.

Remus looked at Lily.

"Sure, why not," she said.

"Then lets go to Hogsmeade!" he said cheerfully, linking arms with Lily and leading the way along the passage.

Lily giggled but walked with him all the same.

"I think you just lost your girlfriend, mate," Sirius said to James.

"I've noticed," he growled.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

The book was right. When you followed the "secret" passage it did indeed come out at a door in the dark alley a block away from Madam Puddifoots. Lily was rather curious as to know how the marauders had stumbled across this secret passage but she kept her mouth shut. She knew they sneaked around… the answer was almost obvious. But after the shock of running into them had worn off everything started to sink in. She'd be spending her _entire _summer with these boys. And she was the _only _girl. And two of the boys in the group were very _active _and one of those two happened to _like her very much_. She had the slight visual of being locked in a broom closet with one – if not two – of them and being made out with and… _other _things. Her lips curved upwards at the idea but she nearly slapped herself moments later. She did _not _want to do those things with Potter. It's just that he was sort of her only – _last _– option at the moment. She certainly wasn't going to do such _vulgar _things with Black – and Remus just wasn't like that. Not that Lily was like that either or anything.

As the group emerged from the alleyway they wandered around. James took great time showing Lily around the places of Hogsmeade that she'd never seen – or visited – before (in her four years of coming). She noticed the nasty looks he threw at Remus on occasion but she assumed it was something that she neither cared about nor knew about. So once again she kept her mouth shut.

They wandered into Honeydukes and got some chocolate (Remus stuffing his face and pockets with the substance) before retiring to the Three Broomsticks for butterbeer. They all lounged around the table and talked for a while (Sirius and James eagerly talking about things they could get up to and Remus and Lily discussing the next years prefect duties).

Lily yawned and glanced at the clock above the bar.

"Oh! It's nearly eleven! Have we really been busy this whole time?" she asked.

James and Sirius glanced at the clock dismissively. "Yep, guess so," Sirius said.

Lily sent a questioning glance towards Remus.

"We usually stay out later than this. Eleven o'clock at night is nothing," he said, nodding towards the other boys.

"Oh… so I take it none of you are tired?"

"Not particularly," Sirius and James said together.

"Well, I am… so I think I'll be getting back. Remus, care to join me?" she asked, scooting out of the booth.

"I'd love to," Remus said, also getting out.

"Actually," James said hastily, downing the rest of his drink and standing up. "I think I'll join you guys too."

"There's no need, James," Lily said, pulling her cloak tighter around her. "It's obvious that you and Sirius want to stay out later. It's fine with Remus and me. We can walk back together."

"No, really, Lily, I want to go back to Hogwarts too," James said, looking deep into her green eyes.

"Proooooooongs," Sirius whined.

"See, James?" Lily asked, waving her hand at Sirius. "He wants to stay – you do too. Remus? You ready?"

Lily and Remus walked out the door, James staring after them, his mouth open like a gaping fish. He watched them until they disappeared from sight. Then, he turned around, and:

"You stupid prat!" he yelled, slapping Sirius on the shoulder.

"Owww! What?" he asked, rubbing his shoulder.

"Now they're going to be alone together! Can you not put the pieces together?" He waved his hand violently in the direction where they'd disappeared.

"What? You think Remus would shag her? Hell, he doesn't do that, Prongs!" Sirius exclaimed, getting up and following James to the door.

James groaned. "I didn't think of that!"

"Evans isn't like that – Moony isn't like it either," Sirius said confidently as they strolled down the street.

James sighed.

"I'm sorry, Prongs… I guess I didn't realize."

"You realized hours ago when you commented that I'd _lost my girlfriend_," James spat, obviously in a right temper.

"Prongs!" Sirius exclaimed, grabbing his friend by the shoulder. "Moony is a _marauder _– we have the dibs pact! You have dibs on Evans! He would _never _go out with Evans! So just _relax_, mate."

He mumbled something incoherent.

Sirius rolled his eyes, preparing himself for a this-is-the-truth-talk.

"James, if Evans doesn't like you then you have to _live with it_. You're just depressing yourself by moping around this way. Don't get your damn hopes up!" He shook James. "Now, lets get your mind of it… wanna go get some firewiskey?"

"Yeah…" James mumbled. "I feel like getting drunk."

"Then it's settled," he said, dropping his hands from James's shoulder. "Let's go get drunk."

…

"I had fun tonight, Remus," Lily commented when they emerged from behind the mirror.

"Yeah, me too," he said, holding the door open for her.

"Although I must admit, this summer is going to be really interesting," she said with a laugh.

"How so?"

"Well… I'm sharing Hogwarts with three of the famous marauders. There's going to be a lot of trouble, am I right?"

Remus laughed. "Not nearly as much as during the year… they have a better chance of getting caught over the summer. Its just going to be pranks between the four of us, mainly."

"That makes me feel much better," Lily said, chortling. "I suppose I should lock the dorm door before I go to bed now."

"That would be advised," Remus said with a nod as they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Hey, Remus?" Lily asked, turning around before heading up the staircase.

"Yes?"

"Thanks."

"For what?" he asked, puzzled.

"For being a great friend," she said softly, before turning and heading up the stairs.

"Yeah… you too," he whispered to the dark common room.

* * *

**Author's Ramblings: **I sort of wanted to end it at "face of James Potter" but that'd just be increasingly stupid, seeing as you knew it was him all along. Besides, what was I supposed to do with the next chapter? Write a paragraph then say "the end," review, see you soon? Hahaha – no. It's called a chapter for a reason so the writer in me urged the keys to keep typing and put it where I ended it today. But you don't really care, now do you?

Although I'm a bit pessimistic about where I ended it today… I have a bit more going, and it'd make more sense in this chapter… but I felt that it was already long enough and I don't exactly fancy being murdered for a too-long chapter. But that "extra" part will be at the beginning of the next chapter.

Oh, and in reference to the dibs pact… I used that in my "One Moment" story (one-shot). It's a good story, at least I think so.

Thanks for reading and please review!


	4. Drunken Madness

**Author's Ramblings: **I'm considering a strike… I need reviews. They're like water to me. I need them to live. Do I sound pathetic enough? Cause if I don't I can make myself more pathetic…

**Chapter News: **Blah. The beginning of this chapter I scribbled down on note-paper, expecting it to be a sentence or two. But I didn't want to forget the important parts I wanted _in _it (a common thing I do), so I ended up having many twists and turns in my writing. Funny, really.

**Apologies: **I'm sorry for such a short chapter. But the next one will be nice and long to make up for it. I promise.

**Chapter Four: Drunken Madness**

James and Sirius made their way into the Gryffindor common room at 3am with many difficulties. They stumbled through the portrait hole, James promptly tripping over a rug.

"Hahaha, shats a shug! Pads! Haha, look, I shipped oshur a shug!" James slurred, pointing to the rug.

Sirius joined James in the maniacal laughter. They stopped abruptly. "Shats not shunny," James slurred.

The pair headed towards the boys' staircase and main a vain attempt to head up the stairs at the same time, resulting in being squished shoulder-to-shoulder between the brick. They struggled against each other, each trying vainly to move forward. Ten minutes later, with little success, James finally broke through and tripped up the stairs, smashing his face into the wall multiple times, laughing like mad each time he did so.

They made their way up to the dorm, giggling the whole way, and leaned against the dormitory door, pushing on it to open.

"Open, shoor!" James pouted at it, slamming his shoulder against the door, making quite a racket. "Open!"

"Haha, Prongs, shook!" Sirius pointed to the doorknob. "Shook! It's all round shand smooth." He giggled.

James joined in on the giggling and continued to attempt to open the door.

"What the hell?" said a voice from the other side of the door.

Just as James was trying to break the door open, it swung open to admit them, Remus standing in front of them in his pajamas, his finger bookmarking a page in a book.

James crashed to the floor, Sirius stumbling in after him.

"Haha, shook, Pads!" James giggled, clinging to the fabric of Remus's pajama bottoms. "It's Moony!"

"Right shoo are, Prongs," Sirius said, swaying from side to side.

"James, are you _drunk_?" Remus asked, bending down to check James's eyes. He sighed. "Yes, of course you are. Come on, get out of the doorway," he said, standing up and pulling James by the wrist out of doorway. He closed the door behind him.

"Haha, Prongs, shush what?" Sirius slurred, pointing his finger at the bedpost.

"Haha, Pads, shut?" James asked.

"Haha, Evans is sherty," he said, glancing at the picture of Lily that James had stolen in third year and kept on his night stand. Sirius began to giggle before promptly passing out on his bed.

"Evans…" James repeated, seeming sober for a moment.

"James, c'mon, get up," Remus encouraged, helping him up.

"Lily…" James murmured.

"What about Lily?" Remus asked, sitting James down on his bed.

"She shikes you…" James choked.

"No she doesn't, James."

"She wanted to shalk with shoo…"

"We both wanted to leave, that's all, James."

"Shno its shnot."

"James, quit thinking about Lily. Lets just get you into bed, okay?" Remus made to move to get James's pajamas but James stood up and got close to him.

"Just shake her, Moony," he growled (slurred in a growl).

"I don't want her, James – you do," Remus said calmly, once again moving to get James ready for bed.

"Shesh you shoo! I show you shoo!" he cried.

"No, I don't," Remus repeated calmly.

"Just shake her!" James screamed, his face turning red.

"James, listen to me," Remus said, attempting to sit him down.

"Shno!" James screamed, pushing Remus back. "Shoo listen stoo me!"

Remus stumbled but caught himself on the bedpost.

The door opened as a disgruntled Lily Evans appeared at the door, her hair slightly mussed, dressed in loose black pajama pants and a tight white tank top.

"What's all the racket about?" she asked. She observed the situation but before she could get a word in edge wise – or be noticed – James went into a rage.

"It shoesn't matter, Moony! Shoo don't care shat I love her! Go ashead and shirt with her! I don't scare! She shoesnt love me – she loves shoo! Sho take sher!" James screamed, in hysterics, with tears threatening to erupt from his eyes.

"James!" Lily exclaimed, rushing up to him. "Are you _drunk_?" she asked. She turned to Remus. "Is he _drunk_?"

"Apparently so," he said with a nod.

"Lily!" James exclaimed. "Shere's your lover!" he declared to Remus, pointing to her. "Just shake her!" he yelled again.

"James – no!" Remus exclaimed. "You are out of your mind! Just calm down and lets get you to sleep!" he said, trying to sit James down again.

"Shno!" he yelled, pushing Remus back once again.

"James!" Lily screamed, slightly frightened.

"Sit doesn't shatter, Moony! She doesn't love sme! So shake her!"

"James, please," Lily said, tearing up at the sight. "Please calm down, James."

James studied her but quieted all the same.

"Remus, help me," she begged.

Remus stood up and helped her take James's robes off and get him into his bed. She flicked her wand and a goblet of potion appeared.

"Drink this, James," she said, handing him the goblet.

He drank obediently and was out like a light within minutes.

Lily sighed. "Care to explain all that?" she asked.

"I don't really even know what it was about. He was drunk and upset."

Remus looked at James before drawing the curtains around his bed.

"About me?" she whispered.

"I think it'd be safe to say yes," Remus said, walking over to take Sirius's trainers off. He tugged on Sirius's robes until they came off and pushed him all the way on his bed before covering him with a blanket and closing the bed curtains.

"Oh," Lily said softly.

The two looked at each other in silence for a minute.

"You know," Lily said, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger, "I shouldn't really be here – I'm just causing trouble…" she trailed off.

"No you're not, Lily," Remus said defiantly.

"Yes I am!" she protested. "Look at James!" She indicated the now snoring James.

"James was just like that because he is completely obsessed with you and so much _in love _with you. And he was drunk! He doesn't normally act like this! He wouldn't even if it was for a prank!"

"But Remus…" Lily gasped, a tear leaking from her eye. "Bugger," she mumbled, wiping the tear away with the back of her sleeve. "Damn, I don't even know why I'm crying," she sniffed with a laugh.

"Lily, its okay," Remus said, walking up to her and hugging her. "It's not your fault that James was the way he was tonight. He's just had it a bit rough with you, is all."

She liked the way it felt being hugged by Remus. It was cozy and warm and he seemed to really care. He wasn't just hugging her to feel her boobs against his chest like most guys did. He really cared about her.

Lily sniffed. "Yeah, I suppose so."

She wasn't even hugging him back. Her arms were folded up in front of her chest, being pressed against Remus's. He just had her wrapped up in a little… wrap-like thing.

"You okay?" he asked, pulling away.

"Yeah… thanks," she said, wiping her nose on the back of her sleeve. She laughed. "Oh, this is so silly." She stomped her foot in aggravation.

"You're just stressed… you've never seen James act this way before."

"That's probably it…" she said, glancing woefully at the door.

"Go to bed, Lily. It's late. We'll see you in the morning." He walked to the door and held it open for her and watched as she walked out.

"G'night, Remus," she said. Then she glanced at the two occupied beds. "G'night, boys."

-

James sighed. "Pads, did you wet the bed _again_?"

Sirius yawned and stretched, rubbed his bleary eyes, made a couple yap/tasting sounds then looked at James with a wavering gaze. "Pardon?"

"Did you wet the bed?" James repeated.

Sirius looked down at his bed; a large wet puddle was in the center of his bed.

"Oh."

"Yes, 'oh,'" James said, rolling his eyes. "But did you wet the bed?"

"I think I might've gotten a wee bit _excited _last night a-"

James cut him off. "I don't need to know the details of you shagging yourself, Pads."

"That wasn't it," Sirius growled. "As I was _saying_, I got a bit excited with the alcohol and probably transformed… then, y'know… I drooled. A lot," he said, grimacing at the drool on his bed.

"Oh, that's just nasty," James said, backing away. "I pity any woman that sleeps with you…"

"The blonde from Hufflepuff or the brunette from Ravenclaw?" Sirius asked, confused.

"Oh God!" James exclaimed. "Do you take them in _here_?" He examined his bed and poked the sheet with disgust.

"No… we use the trophy room."

"Oh… that's unwanted information, Pads! Now I can't go in there ever again!"

"Like you go in there any more! Ever since you decided to try to _prove that you can be good _to Evans, you've stopped doing _everything_! You don't even go to the snog shelf anymore!" By now Sirius had gotten off the bed and was using many hand gestures to prove his point to James, who was a foot away from him.

James was quiet for a moment while he looked down at the ground.

"I don't snog _you_, Pads," James snarled. "So I don't see why you should care."

"Why I should care?" Sirius asked, his voice growing in octaves. "Because I'm losing my _best mate _because of a _girl_!"

His words echoed in the silent room. James took a deep breath and swallowed.

"I'm sorry, Pads. I'm sorry."

With that James turned on his heel and walked out of the room, still dressed in his wrinkled clothes from the day before.

"What happened?" Remus asked, rolling over and finally waking up.

"A marauder walked out," Sirius said, not looking at Remus.

Remus took his words without speaking. He nodded even though he knew Sirius couldn't see him; he knew what'd happened; he knew they'd had a fight.

"And what makes you so special?" he asked Sirius. "How are you so bright and cheerful this morning? Aren't you supposed to have a hang-over?"

Sirius grinned and looked at him. "Hang-over potion… James got some too."

Once again Remus nodded. If only they'd both had a calming potion.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Lily had gotten up early. She didn't know why, exactly, but she had just jerked awake in bed, thinking many thoughts that were bordering on the label of 'explicit.' But James Potter played her dreams that evening…and that was more than disturbing for her.

What bothered her even more than a near-explicit Potter dream was the Remus Lupin that stood beside her with his hand in the back pocket of her jeans. And how she didn't mind at all. How it felt… _normal._

She sat up in bed, breathing heavily and after an hour of attempted tries, gave up on the fact that she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. So she wrote a letter to Alice and decided to send it to her before the three marauders woke up.

_Alice,_

_Guess who's sharing Gryffindor common room? THE MARAUDERS! With the exception of Peter. I guess he wasn't able to spend the summer. But yes… I ran into them in a passageway the other day. I can't believe Dumbledore didn't tell me they'd be staying! So now I suppose I have three boys for company. Bugger – now I can't girlify their dorm. It kind of depresses me, actually. I hope your summer is better than mine. Love,_

_Lily_

She already had the note rolled up and sealed, ready to be owled for over an hour and she hadn't even heard the slightest sound coming from the marauders' room. She sighed, picked up her letter and walked up towards the Owlery.

And that was how she'd managed to get herself standing at the window, looking out at the Hogwarts grounds, completely lost in thought.

That was also how she was rammed into by none other than James Potter.

"Ouch!" Lily exclaimed, stumbling back, being ripped from her daydream.

"Oh…" James looked up, noticing he'd ran into someone. "Sorry, Evans," he said. He turned his head down and continued walking.

"James?" Lily asked, turning around to watch him walk. He didn't turn around.

"James?" she repeated, walking up to him. He continued walking as if he wasn't there.

"James!" Lily exclaimed, placing her hand on his shoulder and twisting him around to face her.

James was depressed, that was for sure, but he couldn't help but feel his skin tingle and his heart pound at the feel of Lily's hand on his arm. It felt so right.

To him, at least.

"What is _wrong _with you today?" Lily asked, looking deep in his eyes, concerned.

James liked her eyes. They were pretty green and when she was really focused on something (like now, for instance) they went really round and seemed to shine brighter. He wanted to lock eyes with her for the rest of the day and whisper his devotion into her ear… but he couldn't. Not after the row with Sirius. Not after what he said. Not after… not after being told what he'd been told.

He averted his eyes and looked down at the ground.

"It's nothing, Evans," he mumbled. "I'm fine."

"If its nothing, Potter," Lily said, reaching for James's hand, "then you can tell me."

"No, I can't," James said sadly. "But you already saw most of it, so you shouldn't need to know."

He spun on his heel and stalked away before Lily could register what he'd said.

-

The astronomy tower seemed like a good place to run to. The view, the distance, the really long fall down… it seemed good enough.

James pushed through the door and breathed in the fresh air, calming himself immediately. He needed a break. He needed to get away. He needed something _new_.

Seconds later James collapsed on the cement into a small heap, tears falling from his eyes, shaking silently with many gasps. This wasn't _working_. Lily was supposed to love _him _not Remus. She was supposed to want him. Sirius was supposed to be his _best mate _and not be the one to tell him he'd lost _his _best mate to a girl. Sirius was supposed to be there no matter what – that's what best friends did. They were there for each other.

The wind was blowing, dark clouds loomed above him, threatening summer rain… everything was peaceful, for the first time in his life. Everything was peaceful when he was feeling like death was close.

James gulped and looked up at the sky and saw the clouds swirling. Rain was coming. Rain was coming soon, he knew it. Maybe everything old and bad would be washed away and he could start anew. Maybe he could just dream, just reach a little farther and it'd all be better.

He sat, lost in thought for a while, not noticing when I shadow fell over him and another figure sat next to him.

"Many people think rain is a form of purification; that it only rains when someone needs their sins washed away. Sometimes, when people suffer, they walk out into the rain and let it soak through their clothes and wash everything away. I like to think that. It's a great way to just… calm… you," she said quietly, looking up at the sky.

James knew it was her. He knew she was sitting next to him, talking to him. He knew she was being a friend and getting his mind off of everything. He knew she was there for him, if he wanted to talk.

He nodded in agreement but kept quiet. She wouldn't understand. Even if she did, he couldn't tell her because it'd be wrong. She was the thing that was bugging him. He couldn't confess to her all the things about her that was driving him mad. In a good way, of course. But he just couldn't do it.

"I'm always here, James," she said, looking at him. But he didn't meet her eyes. Instead he continued to gaze up at the darkening clouds. It was only 2 o'clock yet the wind seemed to blow like 7 o'clock.

"I'm sorry if I ever hurt you, James," she said. "I never really knew that it was all so important to you. I don't think I ever knew how you felt."

He gulped but kept his eyes away from hers. Her eyes could unleash everything he restrained. Her eyes were like a secret key to everything of his.

"I can't like you, James," she said. "I cant – you're too different from me."

"No you're not," he said, speaking his words for the first time in the conversation.

"James, you need to understand – I'm trying to reach out to you and tell you everything for some sodding reason that I just don't know…. Maybe Remus's gotten to me or something but I know that I definitely _cannot _have a relationship with you. I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"Why not, Lily?" he asked pitifully.

"It'd hurt too much."

"I would _never _hurt you, Lily!" James exclaimed.

"Not like that, James," she whispered.

"Then how?" he asked.

"If it didn't work out between us I'd be heartbroken…"

"No you wouldn't be… you'd be happy."

"That's not true, James!" she cried.

"Why?" he asked loudly over the wind, unable to understand her meaning.

"Because I love you, James!" she choked out tearfully.

James stared at her for a moment.

The clouds had broken and rain was beginning to fall rapidly on the ground. A yellow flash of lightning lit up the sky and James could study Lily's tear-filled eyes watching him in agony.

He uncrossed his legs and leaned over, his hands on either side of Lily's waist, and pushed her down, ready to kiss her until the drain soaked through their skin. She let him guide her down and she allowed him to take comfort on her chest. He was in heaven.

As his mouth made contact with her petal soft lips their eyes snapped open.

And with a pounding heart James opened his eyes to see rain pouring down from the sky onto him and the astronomy tower with rain splattered on his glasses and drops leaking from his eyes. He sighed and rolled over on his side to a fresh spot of wet concrete to remember that it was just a dream.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Shame on me, I know. I'm sorry I had to do this to you. The typical dream scene. But I had to! It's im-port-ahnt-ay! Well, it might be. I don't have the ENTIRE story mapped out… I just have many sub-plots, as I've said before.

Now no more from me cause I hafta go write Chapter 15 of _Stuck to Fate_.

Also, if you love me, will you read _Second Chances _(it's a one-shot)? It has no reviews and is uber lonely. If you really think it's bad, PLEASE let me know so I can delete it. Thanks.

Please review!


	5. Marauder Update

Hey! A year later and finally an update, but not exactly a real one.. haha?

_A Marauder Summer_ has been rechristened _Without Reason_ and it's under a new pen name, acciorock. I edited, revised and fixed the previous four chapters and posted a fifth one today, so I hope you'll all enjoy it.

Thanks for reading, I hope you'll stick with it (even though I'm sure you've forgotten it already).


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